The present invention relates to light emitting diodes (LEDs) and in particular relates to LEDs formed with active portions of Group III nitrides on silicon carbide substrates.
As set forth in Ser. No. 11/037,965 cited above (“the '965 application”), significant improvements have recently been demonstrated in the output of light emitting diodes based on the Group III nitride material system using conductive silicon carbide substrates. In particular, the '965 application discloses light emitting diodes that have high brightness on a unit area basis.
A light emitting diode (LED) is a p-n junction semiconductor diode that emits photons when forward biased. Thus, light emitting diodes produce light based upon the movement of electrons in a semiconductor material. Therefore, LEDs do not require (although they can be used in conjunction with) vapors or phosphors. They share the desirable characteristics of most semiconductor-based devices, including high efficiency (their emissions include little or no heat), high reliability and long life. For example, typical LEDs have a mean time between failures of between about 100,000 and 1,000,000 hours meaning that a conservative half lifetime for an LED is on the order of 50,000 hours.
In particular, an LED's emitted light has a frequency (which in turn relates directly to wavelength and color in accordance with well-understood principles of physics) based upon the energy difference between permitted energy levels in the material, a characteristic referred to as the bandgap. The bandgap is a fundamentally property of the semiconductor material and its doping. Thus, LEDs formed in silicon (Si, bandgap of 1.12 electron volts (eV)) will have energy transitions in the infrared (but not the visible) portions of the spectrum. Silicon-based diodes are thus used for items such as low-cost sensors in which visibility to the human eye is either unimportant or specifically undesired. LEDs formed in gallium arsenide (bandgap 1.42 eV), or most commonly in silicon-doped aluminum gallium arsenide (AlGaAs) will emit in the visible portion of the spectrum, but at lower frequencies that produce infrared radiation and red and yellow light.
In turn, because green, blue, and ultraviolet (UV) photons represent higher frequency colors (E=hυ) within (and beyond) the visible spectrum, they can only be produced by LEDs with bandgaps of at least about 2.2 eV. Such materials include diamond (5.47 eV), silicon carbide (2.99 eV) and Group III nitrides such as GaN (3.4 eV). In addition to producing green, blue or ultraviolet light per se, wide bandgap LEDs can be combined with red and green LEDs to produce white light, or with phosphors that produce white light when excited by blue or UV light, or both.
For several reasons, the Group III nitride compositions (i.e., Group III of the periodic table), particularly GaN, AlGaN, InGaN and AlInGaN are particularly useful for blue-emitting LEDs. As one advantage, they are “direct” emitters, meaning that when an electron transition occurs across the bandgap, much of the energy is emitted as light. By comparison, “indirect” emitters (such as silicon carbide) emit their energy partially as light (a photon) and predominantly as vibrational energy (a phonon). Thus Group III nitrides offer efficiency advantages over indirect transition materials. The Group III nitrides will also be referred to herein as the Group III nitride material system.
As another advantage, the bandgap of ternary and quaternary Group III materials (e.g., AlGaN, InGaN, AlInGaN) depends upon the atomic fraction of the included Group III elements. Thus the wavelength (color) of the emission can be tailored (within limits) by controlling the atomic fraction of each Group III element in a ternary or quaternary nitride.
Wide bandgap semiconductors have been, however, historically more difficult to produce and work with than gallium-arsenide or gallium phosphide (GaP). As a result, blue and UV-emitting LEDs have lagged behind GaP-based LED's in their commercial appearance. For example, silicon carbide is physically very hard, has no melt phase, and requires high temperatures (on the order of about 1500-2000° C.) for epitaxial or sublimation growth. The Group III nitrides have relatively large nitrogen vapor pressures at their melting temperatures and thus are likewise difficult or impossible to grow from a melt. Additionally, difficulties in obtaining p-type gallium nitride (and other Group III nitrides) remained a barrier to diode production for a number of years. Accordingly, the commercial availability of blue and white-emitting LEDs is more recent than the corresponding availability of GaP-based and GaAs-based LEDs.
For comparison and other relevant purposes, lighting is typically quantified as to its output. One typical unit of measure is the lumen, defined as a unit of luminous flux equal to the light emitted in a unit solid angle by a uniform point source of one candela (cd) intensity. In turn, the candela is the base unit of luminous intensity in the International System of Units that is equal to the luminous intensity in a given direction of a source which emits monochromatic radiation of frequency 540×1012 hertz and has a radiant intensity in that direction of 1/683 watt per unit solid angle.
Using lumens as the unit of measurement, an intensity of 1200-1800 lumens is typical of incandescent bulbs and 1000-6000 lumens (depending upon circumstances) is typical in natural daylight. Light emitting diodes, however, are much less intense, for example on the order of about 10-100 lumens. One reason is their small size. Thus, applications for single (or small groups of) LEDs have historically gravitated towards indication (e.g. the register of a hand-held calculator) rather than illumination (a reading lamp). Although the availability of blue LEDs and corresponding white-emitting devices have moved such LEDs into wider commercial availability, for illumination purposes, several (or more) LEDs are typically grouped together to provide the desired output.
Because of their typical size and structure, the output of LEDs is often measured in units other than lumens. Additionally, an LED's output also depends upon the applied current, which in turn depends upon the potential difference applied across the diode. Thus, the output of an LED is often referred to as its radiant flux (Rf) and is expressed in milliwatts (mW) at a standard 20 milliamp (mA) drive current.
Blue LEDs are becoming more frequently included in consumer electronic devices, particularly small displays. Common examples include items such as computer screens, personal digital assistants (“PDAs”) and cellular phones. In turn, these small devices drive demand for LEDs with reduced size (“footprint”). Such LEDs, however, must still operate at low forward voltages (Vf) and high light output. To date, however, reducing the size of the blue-emitting Group III nitride devices has tended to increase their forward voltage and reduce their radiant flux.
As noted above, the LEDs disclosed in the '965 application offers significant advantages in increased brightness (using the standard parameters noted above) and reduced forward voltage even at small size.
Although small, relatively thin LEDs are advantageous for smaller devices (such as cellular phone displays); the incorporation of LEDs into larger devices presents different challenges. For example, using greater numbers of small diodes in larger displays can reduce energy conversion, increase power consumption and require the manufacturer to purchase, assemble and maintain a greater number of components. Larger numbers of smaller components can also increase weight, size, volume and the number of required electrical connections. Statistically, larger numbers of smaller devices will include a larger absolute number of defects and may require the manufacturer to maintain larger inventories in order to maintain or increase a given reliability.
As one example, electronic visible displays such as oscilloscopes, televisions, and computer monitors, have historically been based upon cathode ray tubes (“CRTs”). In recent years, however, the advances in various technologies commonly grouped as “flat panel” displays have rapidly displaced cathode ray tubes for many purposes and in particular for consumer uses such as televisions and monitors for personal computers.
Additionally, these and other technologies have in turn driven the growth of much larger displays for consumer and other personal use. Examples include plasma-based and liquid crystal (“LCD”) television screens that are quite large compared to their technological ancestors; i.e., 46 inch flat-panel televisions in place of 21 inch CRT-based televisions.
In particular, liquid crystal displays operate by changing the orientation of liquid crystals, and thus their appearance, using appropriate electrical controls. Liquid crystals do not emit light, however, and thus LCD displays such as televisions must be back lit by some additional source. The availability of “RGB” (red, green, and blue) or white light emitting diodes in large quantity at competitive cost offers such an appropriate back lighting source.
A large display, however, requires a large number of light emitting diodes. In turn, the individual diodes must be physically supported and functionally incorporated into electronic circuits. Furthermore, although light emitting diodes are highly efficient in comparison to incandescent lighting, they still generate a finite amount of energy as heat. Thus, incorporating hundreds or thousands of light emitting diodes into larger applications, particularly those used indoors, correspondingly generates noticeable, or even troublesome amounts of heat and other technological challenges.
Because both complexity and heat are typical problems that must be addressed in designing and using electronic equipment (including large flat-panel displays) that incorporates LEDs, a need exists, and corresponding benefits are desired, for further increasing the efficiency and output of light emitting diodes. This need includes the call for light emitting diodes that produce white light from blue emitting diodes either by incorporating phosphors or through their combination with red and green LEDs.
Accordingly, a need exists for continual improvement in the output of small-size LEDs formed in the Group III nitride silicon carbide material system.